The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1887-01-26
WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENCE.
from an Occasional Correspondent.

WASHINGTON, D. c., January II, 1857
There are ten books in the secret archives
of the United States Patent Office for which
patent attorneys in Washington would be
willing to give 100000. They are the books
containing the names and addresses Of in
Yentors whose cases have been rejected dur
ing the past ten years There has been an
average OF 2S, 600 cases filed in the Patent
Office every year for theelast ten years and
q yearly average of 1000 patents granted.
Last year there were $4,000 applications
filed and 1000 patents issued. the largest
number in any one year. On this showing
something like GU per cent, ofth appllca-
tons have been patented. So there have
been during the last ten years about lOO.0OO
rejected cases. These in part include cases
defeated in interferences and applications
allowed, but on which final fees have not
been paid.
Now good attorneys get fully 90 per cent.
Of their cases allowed and patented; hence
there must be some reason for only 60 per
cent. of the applications being allowed. The
reason is this; fully 5000 inventors every
year make out their own cases and try to get
Them through the Patent Office. Not know
ing the routine they almost Invariably get
involved in the meshes of red tape and the
intriclcics of Patent Office procedure. The
difficulty may be slight, mere informally,
defective drawing. an improperly worded
application. an indefinite specification, or Al
slight interference requiring few amend
ments which q skillful patent attorney could
make in half an hour But to the inventor
these prove an insurmountable obstacle; his
application is rejected and be gives up in
disgust or despair.
Applications for patents in the United
States patent Office 60 first to the % princi-
pie examiners according to the subject mat
ter. If they are rejected, two years ore al
lowed in which to amend them or take other
necessary action. If no action shall have
been taken at the end of two years, such
cases are treated as abandoned, aud are sent
to the division where they are entered in
the books which the Patent Attorneys so
much covet. Fully $4,000 ef the rejected
cases of the last ten years fall under these
conditions. At low estimate $4,000 of
these rejected cases put in the hands OF a
competent attorney, could be patented. a
patent attorneys fees on such conditional
cases would be about s25 per case-a gross
sum of s625, 900. Count ont disguised in
SeQCerS uUQ lUOSS uCI dUlc W pay, oslii 49,
enormous number would get out patents II
they knew how. But the trouble is just
here-no one outside the Patent Office is al:
lowed access to these little books. And
without them they cannot learn the naine
and address of the inventors. Then agaln
there are some 1000 cases now lying in the
Examiners rooms awaiting the two year
limit. These are still more valuable, for II
they are taken up before the time-limit e1-
pires, the initial fees do not lapse, while ID
the other cases they would have to be re-
paid.
The practice in the United States Patent
OHce was not always thus. Dnrins Grants
first term, for period of about year, at
toroeys were above access to ell letter books.
and previons to that had been allowed &C
cess to the files of abandoned cases. but there
was O constant scramble and not infrequent-
" downright fights over them, and about
1876 the Patent Office made them secret.